Treatment of autoimmune diseases

ABSTRACT

An autoimmune vaccine is provided for administration to human patients to alleviate the symptoms of autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. The vaccine comprises an aliquot of the patient&#39;s blood, containing, inter alia, leukocytes having upregulated expression of various cell surface markers and lymphocytes containing decreased amounts of certain stress proteins. It is produced by subjecting the blood aliquot extracorporeally to certain stressors, namely oxidizing agents, UV radiation and elevated temperature.

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 08/352,802 filed Dec. 1, 1994 and now U.S. Pat. No. 5,591,457,which is in turn a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser.No. 07/941,327 filed Sep. 4, 1992 and now abandoned, which was in a turna continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/832,798(now abandoned) filed Feb. 7, 1992.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to vaccines, their preparation and use in medicaltreatments. More particularly, it relates to treatments for alleviatingautoimmune diseases and their symptoms, to a vaccine useful therein, andto processes for preparing and using such a vaccine.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Autoimmune diseases include rheumatoid arthritis, graft versus hostdisease, systemic lupus erythromatosis (SLE), scleroderma, multiplesclerosis, diabetes, organ rejection, inflammatory bowel disease,psoriasis, and other afflictions. It is becoming increasingly apparentthat many vascular disorders, including atherosclerotic forms of suchdisorders, have an autoimmune component, and a number of patients withvascular disease have circulating auto antibodies. Autoimmune diseasesmay be divided into two general types, namely systemic autoimmunediseases (exemplified by arthritis, lupus and scleroderma), and organspecific (exemplified by multiple sclerosis, diabetes andatherosclerosis, in which latter case the vasculature is regarded as aspecific organ).

In general terms, a normally functioning immune system distinguishesbetween the antigens of foreign invading organisms (non-self) andtissues native to its own body (self), so as to provide a defenceagainst foreign organisms. Central to the proper functioning of theimmune system, therefore, is the ability of the system to discriminatebetween self and non-self. When a patient's immune system fails todiscriminate between self and non-self and starts to react against selfantigens, then an autoimmune disorder may arise.

The causes responsible for the reaction of an affected person's immunesystem against self are not fully understood, and several differenttheories have been put forward. The immune response to an antigen istriggered by the interaction of the antigen with receptors ofpredetermined specificity on certain lymphocytes. It is believed that,at an early stage in development of the immune system, those lymphocyteswith receptors recognizing self antigens are recognized and eliminatedfrom the body's system by a process of deletion. Alternatively, or inaddition, such self-reactive lymphocytes may be controlled by thesuppression of their activities. Both mechanisms probably occur.

The immune system of normal healthy individuals is able to identify andto react against a family of proteins which are highly conserved innature (i.e. they have a similar structure throughout all livingorganisms). This family of proteins is called the stress or heat-shockproteins (HSP), and they are grouped according to their approximatemolecular weights. Members of the HSP family include the HSP60 group,including, among others, proteins in the molecular weight range 50 to100 kilodaltons. Increased production of HSP's was first identified as aresponse to heat stress, but this now appears to be part of a generalresponse to a variety of cell stresses. HSPs are normally located withincells, and their function appears to be the stabilization of thestructure of various proteins in stressed cells, so as to protect thecell from the protein denaturing effects of various stressors. However,it is likely that HSPs have a number of other functions which are, asyet, not fully understood. Heat shock proteins, HSP's, are discussed insome detail by William J. Welch, in an article in "Scientific American",May, 1993, page 56.

One group of the family of HSP's, the HSP 60 group, contains proteinswhich show about 50% identity between bacterial cells and human cells.Infection with bacteria containing HSP 65 results in an immune responsein healthy humans against the bacterial HSP65, evidenced by theproduction of anti-HSP65 antibodies. Thus, a healthy immune systemappears to be able to identify and react against self-like antigens.

In certain pathologies, for example many autoimmune diseases such asrheumatoid arthritis and scleroderma, patients also show the presence ofantibodies to HSP 65. In the past, this has led to conclusions thatautoimmune diseases result from bacterial infection. Now it seems likelythat autoimmune diseases are associated with an inappropriate control ofthe autoimmune response. In other words, it is possible that theantibodies to HSP 65 result from an autoimmune reaction initiated byHSPs from the body itself, but one which has been improperly controlled.In such cases, therefore, it should be possible to control aninappropriate autoimmune response, by stimulating the body's naturalimmune control mechanisms, using a particular and specific method ofvaccination.

To stimulate the body's immune response, a vaccine is required whichwill, upon injection into the host body, enable the host immune systemto present the antigens contained in the vaccine to cells of the hostimmune system. Antigen presentation is performed by antigen presentingcells.

A vaccine to treat autoimmune diseases should contain antigens orfragments thereof (peptides) that will activate the body's immunecontrol mechanisms present. In addition, the antigens (peptides) shouldbe present in a form which can be recognized by the host immune systemwhen the vaccine is introduced into the host. Certain of the antigensmay be present on intact cells. The objective of such a vaccination isto activate regulatory immune pathways, particularly those controllingautoimmune responses, thereby downregulating the autoimmune response.

The particular antigens which will activate the control mechanisms of amammalian autoimmune system are not fully understood. It is howeverrecognized that they may include antigens derived from lymphocytereceptors, which may function to stimulate control mechanisms, toinhibit those lymphocytes which cause pathological autoimmune responsesin the patient. They may also include HSPs, such as the HSP 60 group ofproteins, and leucocyte surface molecules such as those of the MajorHistocompatibility Complex (MHC) including MHC Class II molecules. MHCClass II molecules function physiologically to present peptides to CD4⁺T-cells as part of the immune response.

It is important that the lymphocyte receptors and other cell-derivedmolecules for vaccination of an auto-immune suffering patient be derivedfrom cells obtained from the same patient, since this system willcontain the autoimmune specificity. Receptors on other leucocytes in theblood may alternatively or additionally be important in a proposedvaccination process. The use of such a system as the basis of a vaccinemay be considered analogous to the use of a particular viral antigen asa vaccine to treat and prevent disease caused by that virus. A vaccinefor treating an autoimmune disease should, therefore, be prepared from asample of the patient's own blood. Such a vaccine may be described as anautovaccine.

For antigens to be effective in stimulating (or inhibiting) the immunesystem, the antigens should be presented to immune cells of the hostsystem by antigen-presenting cells, which are naturally present in thebody. Many of the antigen-presenting cells are phagocytes, which attachto the antigens, engulf them by phagocytosis, and break them down orprocess them. The preparation of such an autovaccine should include aprocess whereby the lymphocytes and other leucocytes in the vaccine,which may be a source of antigens, are modified into a form whereby theyare likely to be phagocytosed by phagocytic antigen-presenting cellsupon re-injection into the patient, so that the antigens or effectiveresidues thereof are presented on the surface of an antigen-presentingcell. Then they can effect a controlling mechanism on the immune system,either inhibitory or stimulatory.

During the normal growth period of a mammalian body, tissues becomereshaped with areas of cells being removed. This is accomplished by thecells' undergoing a process called programmed cell death or apoptosis,the apoptotic cells disintegrating and being phagocytosed while notbecoming disrupted.

BRIEF REFERENCE TO THE PRIOR ART

U.S. Pat. No. 3,715,430 Ryan relates to a method and apparatus forproducing substantially pure oxygen having a controlled content of ozoneand higher oxygen polymers. The purified oxygen gas is exposed toultraviolet light in a wavelength of 2485 to 2537 angstrom units inorder to produce 5 to 500 parts per million of ozone and higher oxygenpolymers in the gas mixture. Ryan indicates that the gas produced inthis manner is non-irritating to the human body and may be intravenouslyinjected into the blood stream for therapeutic use.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,632,980 Zee et al. discloses a method of freeing bloodand blood components of enveloped viruses by contacting the blood orblood product in an aqueous medium with an enveloped virus inactivatingamount of ozone. The treatment is carried out at a temperature of 4° to37° C., and an ozone concentration of 1-100 ppm.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,831,268 Fisch et al. provides a method for the radiationof blood to prevent arteriosclerosis related heart and vascular diseasescaused by disturbances in the fat exchange. The disclosed processinvolves irradiating the blood in a blood conducting tube with radiationhaving an intensity of from about 1 mWcm⁻² to 10 mWcm⁻² in a wavelentghrange of from about 300 to 600 nm.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,968,483 Mueller et al. describes an apparatus foroxygenating blood, by treating an aliquot of a patient's blood,extracorporeally, with an oxygen/ozone mixture and ultraviolet light, ata controlled temperature. The apparatus is proposed for use inhaematological oxidation therapy.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,052,382 Wainwright discloses an apparatus for thecontrolled generation and administration of ozone. The apparatusincludes a generator for generating ozone, a monitor for monitoring theozone production, a dosage device for providing a predetermined amountof ozone administration, and a computer control device for controllingthe operation of the apparatus. The patent further discloses thatadministration of ozone to patients is known for the treatment of viraland bacterial infections, as well as for the treatment of external soresand wounds.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel autovaccineuseful in the alleviation of symptoms of at least one autoimmunedisease.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a novelprocess for the preparation of such an autovaccine.

It is a further and more specific object of the present invention toprovide a novel treatment for the alleviation of the symptoms of atleast one autoimmune disease in a human patient suffering therefrom.

Accordingly, the present invention provides, from a first aspect, anautovaccine for treatment of an autoimmune disease in a mammalianpatient, and derived from an aliquot of the autoimmune patient's ownblood. The autovaccine is characterized by the presence therein, incomparison with the normal blood of the autoimmune patient, of at leastone of the following characterizing features:

increased numbers of lymphocytes and other leucocytes, exhibiting acondensed apoptotic-like morphology;

a release of specific proteins from the cell surface of the bloodleucocytes, including the MHC Class II molecule HLA-DR, resulting in areduction in the number of cells expressing such surface proteins;

an upregulation in the expression of certain cell surface markers forexample CD-11b, a component of the ligand for the cell adhesion moleculeICAM-1; and certain T-cell regulatory molecules;

an increase in the amount of heat shock protein HSP-60 in the plasma;

a decrease in HSP-72 within the lymphocytes.

By inducing an apoptotic-like state in the lymphocytes and otherleucocytes in the blood comprising the autovaccine, as evidenced by theincreased numbers of lymphocytes and other leucocytes exhibiting acondensed apoptotic-like morphology therein, these cells may become morereadily phagocytosed upon re-injection into the host body.

There are a number of different phagocytic cell types present in themammalian body, including various antigen presenting cells andneutrophils. In order to facilitate phagocytosis by antigen presentingcells rather than by other phagocytes, the lymphocytes and otherleucocytes present in the autovaccine of the invention are treated sothat they may interact preferentially with antigen presenting phagocyticcells. Cells adhere to each other by a number of mechanisms includingthe expression of cell adhesion molecules. Cell adhesion moleculespresent on one cell type interact with specific ligands for particularadhesion molecules present on the adhering cell type. The presentinvention may result in a preferential interaction of cells in theautovaccine to antigen presenting cells in the host body, byupregulation, on the surface of the cells in the autovaccine, of theexpression of the ligand for adhesion molecules found onantigen-presenting cells in the host body. Antigen presenting cellsexpress a number of cell adhesion molecules, including ICAM-1, acomponent of the ligand of which is CD-11b. One way by which the processof the invention may change the preferential phagocytosis of apoptosingcells is by upregulation of CD-11b.

The preparation of the autovaccine according to the present inventioncomprises extracting from the patient suffering from an autoimmunedisease an aliquot of blood of volume about 0.01 ml to about 400 ml, andcontacting the aliquot of blood, extracorporeally, with an immunesystem-stimulating effective amount of ozone gas and ultravioletradiation.

The treatment for the alleviation of the symptoms of at least oneautoimmune disease in a human patient suffering therefrom, in accordancewith the present invention, comprises extracting from the patient analiquot of blood of volume about 0.001 ml to about 400 ml, contactingthe aliquot of blood, extracorporeally, with an immunesystem-stimulating amount of ozone gas and ultraviolet radiation,followed by administering the treated blood aliquot to the humanpatient.

BRIEF REFERENCE TO THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawing FIGURE is a graphical presentation of theresults of Example 2 below.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

When the autovaccine according to the present invention is injected intothe autoimmune patient, significant alleviation of the patient'sautoimmune condition is experienced, as set out in the specificembodiments of the invention described below. Exactly how the vaccineoperates following this re-injection is not currently fully understood.The following tentative explanations are offered for a better and morecomplete description of the invention, but are not to be considered asbinding or limiting.

T-cells, which are one kind of lymphocyte and which play a significantrole in the control of the immune system, include CD-8 cells, and CD-4cells otherwise known as T-helper cells, further subdividable into TH1and TH2 cells. The TH1 cells secrete pro-inflammatory cytokines such asinterferon gamma. The TH2 cells are considered to be regulatory cellsand secrete regulatory cytokines, such as interleukin-4. In a normal,healthy individual, the ratio of TH1 cells to TH2 cells is around 3:1.In autoimmune conditions, there is usually an imbalance in the TH celltypes, often with an increase in the TH1 cells compared to the TH2cells, i.e. there is a change in the ratio between them, with aconsequent development of an inflammatory condition often noted inautoimmune disease. A number of components of the autovaccine of thepresent invention, including HLA-DR and/or other MHC antigens releasedfrom the leucocyte cell surfaces, upregulate the TH2 cells in thepatient's blood, thereby increasing the secretion of regulatorycytokines, and/or upregulating the suppressor cells to stimulate aninhibitory pathway for the autoimmune disease and alleviate or evenswitch off the autoimmune response pathway.

It is also commonly accepted that autoimmune disease sufferers may havesignificant populations of abnormal autoreactive T-cells, which arepartly responsible for the autoimmune disease. The autoimmune diseasesuffering patient's ability to suppress these autoreactive T-cells iscompromised. The autovaccine of the invention restores the systemtowards a normal immune state.

The autovaccine is prepared by exposing the blood aliquot to at leastone stressor, in controlled amounts, the stressor being selected fromamong oxidizing agents such as ozone, ultraviolet radiation and elevatedtemperature, and combinations of two or more of such stressors. Theresulting blood aliquot, after such treatment, serves as an autovaccine,and can be reinjected into the autoimmune patient. Following a course ofsuch treatments, a patient's signs and symptoms of autoimmune diseasesuch as those of rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma and the like aremarkedly reduced. The subjective reports of alleviation of symptoms ofrheumatoid arthritis are consistent with objective measurements ofrelative erythrocyte sedimentation rates, an objective test accepted asmeaningful in measuring the progression of an autoimmune disease such asrheumatoid arthritis, by the American College of Rheumatology.

In preparing the autovaccine according to the invention, by modificationof a blood aliquot extracted from the patient, the blood cells arestressed. This affects the heat shock proteins, HSP, contained in thecell. HSP-60 levels in the mononuclear cells are reduced, and areincreased in the plasma. Further, the level of HSP-72 present in themononuclear cells is reduced. Also as a result of the process of theinvention, certain surface (membrane) proteins on the lymphocytes, forexample HLA-DR, are reduced whereas others, such as CD-3, do not changeand yet others such as CD-11b in neutrophils are upregulated.Accordingly it is apparently not a non-specific membrane change which isoccurring, nor is it cell destruction. It is a complex active process.

On microscopic visualization of the autovaccine according to the presentinvention, mononuclear cells with a condensed apoptotic-like morphologycan be observed, suggesting the presence in the autovaccine of increasednumbers of apoptosing cells capable of preferential phagocytosis uponreinjection, for appropriate presentation of the antigens of theauto-immune disease.

In the preferred autovaccine in accordance with the present invention,the number of mononuclear cells or leucocytes exhibiting the presence ofHSP-60 therein is decreased, as does the amount of HSP-60 in each cell,as compared with the normal, untreated peripheral blood of the sourcepatient. Whereas the patient normally has, typically, about 30% ofmononuclear cells exhibiting the presence of HSP-60 therein (as measuredby whole blood intracellular flow cytometry), the autovaccine has only12-20%. In clinical studies, it has been found that the figure reducesfrom 29.3% to 15.5%, mean of six tests. Preferably also, the number ofleucocytes exhibiting the presence of HSP-72, which is about 50% in theuntreated blood of the source patient, is reduced to 25-35% in theautovaccine of the present invention. In clinical studies, this figurefor HSP-72 reduced from 49.4% in untreated blood to 30.2% in theautovaccine, mean of six tests, similarly measured.

The number of cells which express the cell surface specific proteinHLA-DR, in the preferred autovaccine of the present invention, isreduced as compared with the patient's untreated blood, possibly as aresult of its release from the cell surface. Typically, the number ofcells expressing HLA-DR reduces from about 23% to about 8-12%, asmeasured by whole blood flow cytometry. In clinical studies, this figurereduced from 23.3% to 10.3%, mean of five experiments.

The upregulation of the surface marker CD-11b in the preferredautovaccine of the present invention can be expressed as an increase inthe percentage of neutrophils in the autovaccine which test positive forCD-11b, compared with the patient's source blood. Typically, theincrease is from about 10% up to the approximate range 70-95%. Inclinical studies, an increase from 10.3% to 84% was obtained, mean ofsix tests.

A significant feature of the present invention is that the source of theblood from which the autovaccine is prepared for a specific patientsuffering from an autoimmune disease is the patient himself or herself.The antigens forming the basis of the autovaccine find their origin inthe patient's own blood. No extraneous antigens are added; the effectiveantigens are present in the patient's blood, and/or are released ormodified by the process of preparing the autovaccine using the patient'sown blood as the source material. Moreover, in many cases, the preciseautoimmune disease from which the patient suffers appears to beimmaterial. The antigens for the autovaccine for the disease are presentin, or are developed by treatment of, the patient's own blood.

Preferably, the stressors to which the leucocytes in the extracted bloodaliquot are subjected are a temperature stress (blood temperature abovebody temperature), an oxidative environment, such as a mixture of ozoneand oxygen bubbled through the blood aliquot, and ultraviolet radiation,simultaneously or successively, but preferably simultaneously.

The present invention provides a method of alleviating the symptoms ofan autoimmune disease in a human, which comprises:

(a) contacting of about 0.01 ml to about 400 ml of blood with an immunesystem modifying effective amount of ozone gas and ultravioletradiation; and

(b) administering the blood treated in step (a) to a human.

In general, from about 0.01 ml to about 400 ml of blood may be treatedaccording to the invention. Preferred amounts are in the range of about0.1 ml to 200 ml. More suitably, the aliquot for treatment has a volumeof from about 0.1-100 mls, preferably 1-50 ml and most preferably 5-15mls. The method most preferably involves treating an aliquot of about 10mls of blood with ozone gas and ultraviolet radiation, thenre-administering the treated blood to the patient by intramuscularinjection.

As noted, it is preferred, according to the invention, to apply allthree of the aforementioned stressors simultaneously to the aliquotunder treatment. Care must be taken not to utilize an excessive level ofthe stressors, to the extent that the cell membranes of the white cellsare caused to be disrupted.

The temperature stressor must keep the aliquot in the liquid phase, i.e.from about 0° C. to about 56° C. and should not heat it above about 55°C. Any suitable source of heat known in the art may be employed to heatthe blood, preferably one or more infrared lamps. Preferably thetemperature stressor warms the aliquot being treated, to a temperatureabove normal body temperature, i.e. to about 37-55° C., and mostpreferably from about 37-43° C., e.g. about 42.5° C. Preferably thetemperature of the blood aliquot is maintained at this elevatedtemperature during the treatment with UV/ozone.

Alternatively, the blood sample is heated while being subjected to UVradiation, until the blood reaches a predetermined temperature(preferably about 42.5° C.), at which point bubbling of ozone gasthrough the blood is commenced. The concurrent UV/ozone treatment isthen maintained for a predetermined period of time, preferably about 3minutes.

Another alternative method involves subjecting the blood to UV/ozonewhile heating to a predetermined temperature (preferably about 42.5°C.), then either ending the treatment once the predetermined temperatureis reached, or continuing UV/ozone treatment for a further period oftime, most preferably about 3 minutes.

The application of the oxidative stressor preferably involves exposingthe aliquot to a mixture of medical grade oxygen and ozone gas, mostpreferably by bubbling through the aliquot, at the aforementionedtemperature range, a stream of medical grade oxygen gas having ozone asa minor component therein. The ozone gas may be provided by anyconventional source known in the art. Suitably the gas stream has anozone content of from about 1.0-100 μg/ml, preferably 3-70 μg/ml, andmost preferably from about 5-50 μg/ml. The gas stream is supplied to thealiquot at a rate of from about 0.01-2.0 liters per minute, preferably0.1-1.0 liters per minute and most preferably at about 0.12 liters perminute (STP).

The ultraviolet radiation stressor is suitably applied by irradiatingthe aliquot under treatment from an appropriate source of UV radiation,while the aliquot is maintained at the aforementioned temperature andwhile the oxygen/ozone gaseous mixture is being bubbled through thealiquot. The ultraviolet radiation may be provided by any conventionalsource known in the art, for example by a plurality of low-pressureultraviolet lamps. The method of the invention preferably utilizes astandard UV-C source of ultraviolet radiation, namely UV lamps emittingin the C-band wavelengths, i.e. at wavelengths shorter than about 280nm. Ultraviolet radiation corresponding to standard UV-A and UV-Bsources can also be used. Preferably employed are low-pressureultraviolet lamps that generate a line spectrum wherein at least 90% ofthe radiation has a wavelength of about 253.7 nm. An appropriate dosageof such UV radiation, applied simultaneously with the aforementionedtemperature and oxidative environment stressors, is obtained from lampswith a power output of from about 15 to about 25 watts, at the chosen UVwavelength, arranged to surround the sample container holding thealiquot, each lamp providing an intensity, at a distance of 1 meter, offrom about 45-65 mW/sq.cm. Several such lamps surrounding the samplebottle, with a combined output at 253.7 nm of 15-25 watts, operated atmaximum intensity, may advantageously be used. At the incident surfaceof the blood, the UV energy supplied is 0.2-0.25 Joules per cm². Such atreatment provides a blood aliquot which is appropriately modifiedaccording to the invention to create the auto-vaccine outlined aboveready for re-injection into the patient.

The time for which the aliquot is subjected to the stressors can be froma few seconds to about 60 minutes. It is normally within the time rangeof from about 0.5-60 minutes. This depends to some extent upon thechosen intensity of the UV irradiation, the temperature and theconcentration of and rate at which the oxidizing agent is supplied tothe aliquot. The more severe the stressors applied to the aliquot,generally the shorter time for which they need to be applied. Someexperimentation to establish optimum times may be necessary on the partof the operator, once the other stressor levels have been set. Undermost stressor conditions, preferred times will be in the approximaterange of about 0.5-10 minutes, most preferably 2-5 minutes, and normallyaround 3 minutes. The starting blood temperature, and the rate at whichit can be warmed or cooled to a predetermined temperature, tends to varyfrom patient to patient.

In the practice of the preferred process of the present invention, theblood aliquot (or the separated cellular fractions of the blood, ormixtures of the separated cells, including platelets, these variousleucocyte-containing combinations, along with whole blood, beingreferred to collectively throughout as the "aliquot") may be treatedwith the stressors using an apparatus of the type described in U.S. Pat.No. 4,968,483 Mueller. The aliquot is placed in a suitable, sterile,UV-radiation-transmissive container, which is then fitted into themachine. The temperature of the aliquot is adjusted to the predeterminedvalue, e.g. 42.5° C., by the use of a suitable heat source such as an IRlamp, and the UV lamps are switched on for a fixed period before the gasflow is applied to the aliquot providing the oxidative stress, to allowthe output of the UV lamps to stabilize. Then the oxygen/ozone gasmixture, of known composition and controlled flow rate, is applied tothe aliquot, for the predetermined duration of 0.5-60 minutes,preferably 2-5 minutes and most preferably about 3 minutes as discussedabove, so that the aliquot experiences all three stressorssimultaneously. In this way, the blood aliquot is appropriately modifiedto produce an auto-vaccine according to the present invention sufficientto achieve the desired effects.

Example 4 below supports the finding that the method of treating bloodaccording to the invention has an immune modifying effect. Inparticular, treatment of blood with UV/ozone has been found to increasethe expression of activation markers on the surface of the lymphocytes(see Example 5).

Thus, the invention also provides a method of stimulating or activatingthe immune system in a human by contacting about 0.01 ml to about 400 mlof blood from a human with an immune system-stimulating effect amount ofozone gas and ultraviolet radiation, followed by administering thetreated blood to a human. Similarly, the invention contemplates a methodof treating an immune system disorder in a human, by contacting about0.01 ml to about 400 ml of blood from a human with an immunesystem-stimulating effective amount of ozone gas and ultravioletradiation, followed by administering the treated blood to a human.

The immune system disorders which may be treated by this method includeallergic conditions, autoimmune conditions, and an inflammatoryconditions. Specific immune system disorders which may be treatedaccording to the invention include rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma,diabetes mellitus, organ rejection, miscarriage, multiple sclerosis,inflammatory bowel disease, psoriasis, and other inflammatory disorders.The discoveries of the present invention may also be applied to treatautoimmune diseases which manifest as infertility, includingendometriosis. It is also effective in treatment of atherosclerosis,which can be regarded as an autoimmune disease of the vasculature.

The invention is further described for illustrative purposes withreference to specific examples of clinical use of it and objective andsubjective results from such clinical uses.

SPECIFIC DESCRIPTION OF THE MOST PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS EXAMPLE 1

Thirty patients with active rheumatoid arthritis, 21 females and 9males, were treated by the preferred process according to the presentinvention. The age range of the patients was 26-72 years, with the meanage 52.2 years, at the start of the study. Each patient received between30 and 60 individual treatments (mean 48.3 treatments) over a time spanof 62 weeks (mean 20.6 weeks). Each individual treatment consisted ofthe removal of a 10 mL aliquot of blood, the treatment of the bloodaliquot simultaneously with gaseous oxygen/ozone mixture and ultravioletlight at elevated temperature using an apparatus as generally describedin the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,968,483 Mueller et.al.

The constitution of the gas mixture was 14-15 mcg/mL ozone/medical gradeoxygen. The gas mixture was fed through the aliquot at a rate of about200 mLs/minute, for a period of 3 minutes. The temperature of thealiquot was held steady at 42.5° C. The UV radiation had a wavelength of253.7 nm.

Post treatment measurements were conducted 1 day to nine months afterthe final treatment of each patient (mean 12.4 weeks). Blood sampleswere taken and analyzed for leucocytes, erythrocyte sedimentation rate,rheumatoid factor and C-reactive protein, using standard testprocedures. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive proteinare elevated in most inflammatory conditions including rheumatoidarthritis, and Rheumatoid Factor is elevated in most cases of rheumatoidarthritis as well as in some cases of certain other auto-immunediseases. White blood cell count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate,rheumatoid factor and C-reactive protein all showed significantreduction after the course of treatment. Particularly noteworthy is thesignificant reduction in erythrocyte sedimentation rate, an indicator ofrheumatoid arthritis improvement, accepted by the American College ofRheumatology.

In addition, patients were rated by medical personnel subjectively, forthe apparent severity of their rheumatoid arthritis symptoms, before andafter the courses of treatment, on a scale of 5 (very bad) to 1(excellent). Again, a marked improvement in each case was reported.

The mean results are given in the following Table.

                  TABLE                                                           ______________________________________                                                                     Post-                                              Clinical Normal (Pre-Treatment Treatment Paired                               Measurements Ranges Mean ± SD) (Mean ± SD) T-test                     ______________________________________                                        Symptom           3.9 ± 0.9                                                                             2.6 ± 0.6                                                                          p < 0.0001                                 Rating                                                                        Leucocytes 4.0-10.0 11.68 ± 2.84  8.70 ± 1.02 p < 0.0001                10.sup.9 /L                                                                   Erythrocyte 0-20 50.1 ± 22,9 28.1 ± 13.7 p < 0.0001                     Sed. Rate 1 hr                                                                (mm)                                                                          Rheumatoid <100 117.0 ± 76.1  91.7 ± 67.4 p < 0.02                      Factor iu                                                                     C-Reactive <1.0 5.28 ± 3.62 3.73 ± 3.44 p < 0.009                       Protein mg/L                                                                ______________________________________                                    

EXAMPLE 2

Four patients with primary Raynaud's disease were given a course oftherapy according to the invention, in an open clinical trial performedat St Bartholomew's Hospital, London, under properly controlled andsupervised conditions. All four patients showed alleviation of theirsymptoms following treatment.

An investigation of an autoimmune component of the disease in thesepatients demonstrated high levels of auto-antibodies specific for HSP-60and HSP-65 in one patient. The levels of these auto-antibodies in thispatient are shown on the accompanying FIGURE, from which it can be seenthat the levels decreased markedly following a course of therapy. Thefirst course of treatment, indicated "1" on the FIGURE, consisted of 9treatments carried out over 14 days. Furthermore, the levels of theseauto-antibodies began to increase again some weeks later, and were againlowered following a second course of therapy. The second course oftreatment, indicated "2" on the FIGURE, consisted of 5 treatmentscarried out over 10 days. These data suggest that therapy with bloodtreated according to the invention, i.e. the autovaccine describedherein, may reduce an autoimmune response as evidenced by a reduction ofauto-antibodies in a treated patient.

EXAMPLE 3

The helper T-lymphocyte subsets TH1 and TH2 have been measured in 13normal control volunteers and in two patients suffering from theautoimmune disease scleroderma. The ratio of TH1:TH2 in the controls, asmeasured by intracellular cytokine flow cytometry, was found to be3.029+/-0.639 (mean +/- standard deviation). The patients withscleroderma had TH1:TH2 ratios of 5.0 and 4.58 respectively, mostlikely, indicating an increase in the TH1 population relative to the TH2population. In inflammatory pathologies such as many autoimmune diseasesthere is a relative increase in the TH1 cells; therefore it was to beexpected that this ratio would be higher in these patients than in thehealthy control individuals.

Following a course of therapy with blood treated according to theinvention (i.e. the autovaccine described herein), the TH1:TH2 ratios inthese patients was 3.29 and 3.13 respectively, i.e. the ratio hadapproached the normal range. These data suggest that therapy with bloodtreated according to the present invention may reduce an autoimmuneresponse as evidenced by a relative increase in the TH2 cells.

EXAMPLE 4 STAINING OF ACTIVATION MARKERS

This example illustrates an experimental approach which indicates thattreatment of blood with UV/ozone according to the invention has animmune-stimulatory effect on human blood, as evidenced by an increase incertain activation markers on the surface of the treated mononuclearcells.

Samples (20 ml) of peripheral blood were taken from individuals. Eachsample was divided into two aliquots. The first aliquot was treatedaccording to the inventive technique, as follows:

The 10 ml aliquot was treated in vivo for three minutes with ozone gas(variable ozone concentration of 5-50 μg/ml) and ultraviolet light(253.7 nm), at a temperature of 42.5° C. An apparatus similar to thatdisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,968,483 was utilized to carry out thetreatment of the blood sample.

The second 10 ml aliquot from each sample served as an untreatedcontrol.

Each blood sample was stained for certain activation markers ofT-lymphocytes using conventional monoclonal antibody techniques. Theproportion of the total cells which stained positive for the individualmarkers was quantitated by microscopy. The results are as follows:

    ______________________________________                                        Marker           Control Ozone/UV Treated                                     ______________________________________                                        CD25 (IL-2 receptor)                                                                           1%      26%                                                    CD2 (E-rosette receptor) 3% 33%                                             ______________________________________                                    

The above data for this example are all means of duplicates, andindicate that treatment with UV/ozone according to the invention resultsin the activation of T-lymphocytes.

I claim:
 1. A process of treating a mammalian patient suffering from anautoimmune disease, to alleviate the symptoms thereof, whichcomprises:extracting an aliquot of blood from a patient; modifying theextracted blood aliquot extracorporeally by subjecting it to an immunesystem-modifying amount of ozone gas and ultraviolet radiation, so as tocreate in the blood aliquot, in comparison with an equal volume aliquotof said patient's unmodified blood, at least one of the followingdistinguishing features: (a) increased numbers of leukocytes exhibitinga condensed apoptotic-like morphology; (b) a reduction in the number ofleukocytes expressing the MHC Class II leukocyte cell surface specificprotein HLA-DR; (c) an upregulated expression on leukocytes of theCD-11b cell surface marker and re-injecting the blood aliquot somodified into said patient.
 2. The process of claim 1 wherein thealiquot size is from 0.01-400 ml.
 3. The process of claim 2 wherein thealiquot size is from 1-50 ml.
 4. The process of claim 1 wherein theozone gas and ultraviolet radiation are applied to the blood aliquotsimultaneously, whilst the blood aliquot is at a temperature of from37-55° C.
 5. The process of claim 1 wherein the ozone is administered asa gas stream in admixture with medical grade oxygen, the ozone contenttherein being from 0.5-100 μg/ml, at a rate of from 0.01-2.0 liters perminute (STP), over a period of 0.5-60 minutes.
 6. The process of claim 1wherein the ultraviolet radiation is supplied from at least oneultraviolet lamp emitting in the C-band wavelength.
 7. The process ofclaim 1 wherein the ultraviolet radiation is obtained from ultravioletlamps emitting at least about 90% of ultraviolet radiation of awavelength about 253.7 nm.
 8. The process of claim 5 wherein the bloodaliquot is treated with ozone and ultraviolet radiation at a temperaturefrom 37-43° C., for a period of from 2-5 minutes, the ozone/oxygenmixture being supplied at a rate of from 0.1-1.0 liters per minute, withan ozone content of from 5-50 μg/ml.
 9. The process of claim 1 whereinthe autoimmune disease is arthritis.
 10. The process of claim 8 whereinthe autoimmune disease is rheumatoid arthritis.
 11. The process of claim1 wherein the autoimmune disease is scleroderma.
 12. The process ofclaim 1 wherein the extracted blood aliquot is extracorporeally treatedso as to additionally create in the patient's peripheral blood afterre-injection, in comparison with said patient's unmodified peripheralblood, a decrease in the ratio of TH1:TH2 cells.